The answer to this and another very important improvement for us designers was "we are too busy with other important things to implement this right now". I can't imagine what is more important than allowing their designers to expand their customer base beyond U.S. residents with Paypal accounts, but it must be really big. I can't wait for whatever it is.

just to let you know that this issue IS on our radar and we're discussing how to resolve this. It's not a simple problem to solve however (we'd have to start supporting multiple shipping companies and also figure out which shipper works best for each specific country).

Wel'll keep you informed."

This issue is also at the top of uservoice. So this is not a backseat issue. This issue is in the foreground.

I learned a long time ago the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side, be an advocate for myself and others like me. -Maya Angelou
michael@shapeways.com Community Advocate

Hi Johnny, as Michael quoted, we ARE taking this seriously, it is not on the back-burner at all. We do hear your requests, and since this issue has been at the top of the feedback list for some time, we have been addressing it.

Making shipping easier and cheaper is a complex solution and rather than continuing to say "we are working on it", I have been waiting until the solution is implemented to announce it.

I am sorry if this came off as dismissive, it was not the intention, and as Michael quoted from UserVoice, it is being researched right now.

While I can't speak for UTorrent, when something is at the top of UserVoice, you can be SURE we are actually working on it.

We implemented this feedback system to get a very clear idea of which issues are the most important for our community.

That said, some issues involve longer solutions that others. Shipping falls into this category - it is a complex solution that we want to make sure is scaleable around the world. As we grow, we want to make sure that our shipping solution can handle the WHOLE world.

So thank you for your patience while we work on bringing a complete solution for everyone.

Yes, this subject has been "looked at" for a looooong time now. I just recently ordered some silver chain from US and paid $5.80 for USPS shipping. I've ordered from them before and I know there won't be any customs or brokerage fees. Now, admittedly, they do say to allow three to four weeks for delivery but the point is if I'm prepared to wait and have USPS as an option then I will choose that method.

I work in Canada at the moment and I'd like to add how awful it is to actually RECEIVE deliveries. I work M-F, 9-6 and had them redirect my first Shapeway orders. It took them THREE days to straighten it out and I think it's on route. of course I worry that if i'm in a meeting, or lunch, then they will just go away since I need to pay them the COD taxes upon receipt.

Picking it up at their shipping facility is not an option since they are available only M-F. no weekends. Not to mention that they are always out in the middle of no where (about 1 hr from Vancouver).

Canada has Canadian Post, which is located everywhere, open all 7 days so I can actually receive things.

it is a shame that the time it takes for Shapeways to create and ship and arrive in Canada is actually shorter than the time it takes for UPS to actually deliver it to me from its local ship facility.

I received a shipment from NYC to Canada yesterday: I was charged a $10 brokerage fee, no duty and 13% HST. The randomness of what UPS and Canada Customs charges is maddening - I hope Shapeways opens a Canadian distribution terminal soon!

Just because there appears to be some dispute and question about why UPS charges these fees, and why, and when, I'll clarify (I've become intimately familiar with their practices over time):

The fee you get from UPS (at least in Canada) is a brokerage fee. This is not levied by the government, but by UPS itself. The long and the short of it is, when UPS brings your parcel over the border, they need to sign a paper or two, and the brokerage fee is what they charge for signing that paper. Generally, the fee winds up being ~50% of your total package value - so if you order $200 worth of goods, it's a pretty safe bet your brokerage fee will be around $100. Lastly, and sadly, there is no way to escape this fee. It doesn't matter what your item is classified as, it doesn't matter who shipped it or from where (unless it was from within Canada). It has nothing to do with taxation or border fees. It's just UPS grabbing your cash in exchange for the effort of signing a slip of paper for you.

Just one of the many, many reasons we need an alternative.

The one and only way to escape the brokerage fee, I feel I should point out, is if your order is under $20 (not counting shipping). And thank god, because otherwise I wouldn't order a single thing from Shapeways. So as long as your total parcel value is less than $20, UPS won't bother to charge you.

While I would agree your last statement appears to be true now there was one time early on when I ordered a $7.50 WSF model from Shapeways and was charged $14 by UPS! I wasn't savvy enough to argue at the time but I sure as heck would now!

No updates, no information. For something they are "working on" and that "isnt on the backburner" it seems to have been forgotten about. I used to order
a model a month before this, it was fun and exciting seeing my imagined designs become objects you could hold in your hand. Now I just cant justify paying half the price of the models over again just to get them.

I have my eyes on some models but $20 is just too much to ship a few knickknacks. Any progress?

While my earlier statement about being hit with a $14 charge from UPS on a $7.50 order still stands, I have noticed lately that if I keep my orders under around $20 I don't get hit with any extra charges. So, if I order two $20 models in two orders and pay $13 shipping it works out cheaper ($53) than putting it into one order and paying $40 for the models, $6.50 shipiing and then a UPS robbery charge of $15.20 for a total of $61.70.

My first shapeways order, about a month ago, was only some $13, so UPS didn't charge me anything.

Today my second order arrives, value of about $31... and the UPS guy tells me that there's an "import fee" of $15. I was somewhat sleepy so I didn't really think about it and just got out my checkbook and paid it.

And now I look a few things up and find out what rip-off artists UPS are.

Only to a tiny amount (like say, 5%) of the blame do I put at the feet of Shapeways. My items did come well wrapped in bubble-wrap, but they were sent in a box measuring something like 8" x 10" x 5" ... Shapeways could have easily used like a quarter of the bubble-wrap and fit my 3 items into a box less than a quarter of that size (a box of maybe 5" x 3" x 4" could have just as easily worked). Though after reading a few UPS horror stories, I can understand why Shapeways would use so much bubble-wrap and such a big box for such small items.

In future I'm gonna make sure my orders stay under $20, and if UPS demands extra money again I'll tell them to take their bogus fees and eat them.